Mashable

Caroline Kennedy sits astride Macaroni on the South Lawn of the White House.

Image: JFK Presidential Library and museum

Presidential pets have always been celebrities of sorts, from Checkers the dog to Socks the Cat, but for a few years one could regularly be seen nibbling on the White House lawn.

Macaroni, a 10-year-old part-Shetland gelding, was given to young Caroline Kennedy as a gift from Lyndon B. Johnson.

Though usually stabled at the Kennedy family home in Virginia, the pony was often brought in for Caroline and her friends to ride, sometimes accompanied by another pony, Tex.

Macaroni made for good entertainment for visiting dignitaries. In 1962, she tried to steal a bunch of daffodils out of the hands of Queen Farah of Iran, and the next year she received an ornate saddle from King Hassan II of Morocco.

Amid wide public fascination with the seemingly perfect “Camelot” of the Kennedy household, Caroline and Macaroni appeared together on the cover of the Sept. 7, 1962 issue of LIFE Magazine.

That sweet, idyllic cover would go on to inspire a fairly popular song by a young songwriter named Neil Diamond.

March 30, 1962

Image: JFK Presidential Library and museum

March 30, 1962

Secret Service agent Bob Foster leads Caroline Kennedy on a ride with Macaroni.

Image: JFK Presidential Library and museum

March 30, 1962

Image: JFK Presidential Library and museum

March 30, 1962

Image: JFK Presidential Library and museum

March 16, 1962

Macaroni accepts a treat while grazing the South Lawn.

Image: AP

May 17, 1962

Caroline Kennedy rides Macaroni while an unidentified boy rides Tex.

Image: Image: JFK Presidential Library and museum

June 22, 1962

President John F. Kennedy adjusts Caroline's saddle.

Image: JFK Presidential Library and museum

June 22, 1962

Image: JFK Presidential Library and museum

Image: JFK Presidential Library and museum

Image: JFK Presidential Library and museum

June 22, 1962

President Kennedy, John Jr. and Caroline play with Macaroni and Tex.

Image: JFK Presidential Library and museum

Image: JFK Presidential Library and museum

Image: JFK Presidential Library and museum

Government employee Helen Milson feeds sugar to Macaroni on the South Lawn.

Image: AP

March 31, 1962

During a weekend at Camp David, Caroline and Macaroni test out a new saddle given to the family by King Hassan II of Morocco.